..Now, in this last manuscript of the collection, I will echo for emphasis some of their highlights and I will also bring you further up to date with respect to a possible future role for dronedarone, as hinted at by the HARMONY trial. ..

Editorial: advances in the therapy of atrial fibrillation: incrementally progressive but not without missteps

..The incidence of AF in high-risk patients, understanding how physicians manage these patients once AF has been detected, and knowing which patient characteristics are most predictive of developing AF are all unknown...

..In conclusion, data from this study provide insight into community treatment patterns in patients with AF, most without clinically significant structural heart disease or with only uncomplicated hypertension...

Is arterial stiffness a contributing factor to atrial fibrillation in patients with hypertension? A preliminary investigation

James A ReiffelDivision of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University and The New York Presbyterian Hospital, 161 Fort Washington Avenue, New York, NY 10032, USAAm J Hypertens 17:213-6. 2004

..Alternatively, it may be a more indirect and complex relationship involving chronic morphologic, electrophysiologic, and secretory consequences in the atrium consequent to a chronically reduced left ventricular (LV) compliance...

Have sanctioned algorithms replaced empiric judgment in the selection process of antiarrhythmic drugs for the therapy for atrial fibrillation?

James A ReiffelDivision of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, The New York Presbytarian Hospital, New York, NY, USAProg Cardiovasc Dis 47:3-10. 2004

Atrial fibrillation: what have recent trials taught us regarding pharmacologic management of rate and rhythm control?

James A ReiffelDepartment of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Electrophysiology Section, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USAPacing Clin Electrophysiol 34:247-59. 2011

..This review examines the clinical outcomes of several important AF trials, discusses the limitations in applying the major morbidity/mortality findings to everyday clinical practice, and summarizes the lessons learned...

Cardioversion for atrial fibrillation: treatment options and advances

James A ReiffelDepartment of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Section of Electrophysiology, Columbia University, New York, New York 10032, USAPacing Clin Electrophysiol 32:1073-84. 2009

..In conclusion, further trials should clarify the long-term safety profiles of new atrioselective agents and other investigational drugs and define their role in the treatment of AF...

..However, market research and clinical study data indicate a growing use of class III agents (mainly amiodarone) despite long-term safety and tolerability concerns, suggesting that clinical practice does not adhere to current guidelines...

Autonomic modulation of the u wave during sympathomimetic stimulation and vagal inhibition in normal individuals

Anthony R MagnanoDepartment of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York 10032, USAPacing Clin Electrophysiol 27:1484-92. 2004

..Thus, the U wave represents a component of cardiac repolarization that is electrocardiographically and physiologically distinct from the T wave with a unique response to sympathomimetic stimulation...

Device therapies in the post-myocardial infarction patient with left ventricular dysfunction

..If ablation techniques improve, one might ask whether there will still be a role for AADs, and, if so, what will it be and what agents will be used. This manuscript will attempt to answer these questions...

New antiarrhythmic drugs for establishing sinus rhythm in atrial fibrillation: what are our therapies likely to be by 2010 and beyond?